The Most Influential Female Voices

1. Julia Gillard: Our first female Prime Minister had kept silent on sexism directed at her and entrenched in Australian politics since her election but when she finally spoke it wasn’t just Australia, but the world, that stopped and listened. For many of the thousands of women who nominated her she is an inspiration . Throughout a difficult and turbulent year she has taught many of us an important lesson in how to stand up to sexism. It’s not an understatement to call her misogyny speech a watershed moment for women in this country. Photo: Andrew Meares